Lauren Cannell, an inspiring humanitarian leader who has advanced the status of women and girls in Canberra and around the world, has been named the 2025 ACT Woman of the Year.

Mrs Cannell has been recognised for her work as the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Educación Diversa, an international not-for-profit that empowers women and girls through innovative art-based educational programs, campaigns and projects.

Educación Diversa works with children and adolescents both here in the ACT and globally, teaching them about human rights, sexual and reproductive health and the elimination of violence in accessible ways.

Mrs Cannell says her goal is to help young people reach their full potential while also helping to achieve gender equality.

“At Educación Diversa, we use art for accessibility. Typically, in underdeveloped countries, with kids who’ve experienced trauma and/or neglect, we use art as it heals neural pathways, and it means everyone can take part,” Mrs Cannell said.

“Most of us in the humanitarian sector don’t do this work for the recognition, we start our own not-for-profits because we see need. Being a finalist and having a platform to grow awareness is so important because it will help me to expand the program nationally and then internationally.”

Other award recipients include Jayanti Gupta, who has been named ACT Senior Woman of the Year, and Anjali Sharma, who has been named ACT Young Woman of the Year.

As the founder and presenter of the Gender Equity Matters program on 2XX FM, Mrs Gupta has used her platform to highlight issues and achievements relating to gender and women in the ACT. She is also the founder and Chair of the Integrated Women’s Network (IWN), which delivers health and wellbeing workshops, as well as International Women’s Day events.

“Being nominated for the ACT Women’s Award is inspiring and motivates you to do more. Many other women have fought for the rights we have achieved today, so why not pass the good deeds around?” Mrs Gupta said.

Ms Sharma is a climate change activist and role model who has campaigned extensively for environmental reform and justice. She is currently leading a team of young women in Canberra to advocate for and champion the Duty of Care Bill, developing the capacity of young women as climate activists in the ACT.

“One of the goals of advocacy is to spread your message and to know that what you’re doing is reaching communities and people on the ground. While awards are never the purpose of activism, it’s a sign that what we’re doing is working, which is an honour and a privilege,” Ms Sharma said.

The ACT Women’s Awards recognise women and gender diverse people who have made an outstanding contribution to the lives of women and girls in the ACT.

Minister for Women, Dr Marisa Paterson MLA, congratulated the award recipients as they were announced at the ACT Women’s Awards event held on 6 March in the lead up to International Women’s Day.

“Congratulations to the inspiring women who have had their names added to the ACT Women’s Honour Roll this year, and to all the finalists for their impressive work,” Minister Paterson said.

“We are incredibly fortunate to have so many exceptional leaders in the ACT dedicated to uplifting and empowering women and girls in our community.

“Achieving gender equality is a top priority for the ACT Government, and this can only be achieved through strong collaboration with non-government organisations, businesses, and the wider community. Awards like this, which recognise leadership in advancing the status of women and girls, are exceptionally important.”